Final Election Update
| Race Incumbent | |
| CA 7 (Sacramento) Ose (R) – Bera (D) | Bera wins by 1,455 |
| CA 16 (Fresno) Costa (D) –Tacherra (R) | Costa wins by 1,334 |
| CA 26 (Ventura) Brownley (D) –Gorrell (R) | Brownley wins by 4,523 |
| CA 52 (San Diego) Peters (D) –DeMaio (R) | Peters wins by 6,080 |
| AD 39 (San Fernando) Lopez (D) – Bocanegra (D) | Lopez wins by 466 |
| AD 66 (Torrance) Hadley (R) – Muratsuchi (D) | Hadley wins by 706 |
NLRB Delivers an Early Christmas to Unions
The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has overturned the Register Guard decision, replacing a stable, clear, and workable rule supported by the law with an unworkable standard that will only create more conflict. You can (and should) read Steve McCutcheon’s piece here.
New Sick Leave Poster
California’s Division of Labor Standards Enforcement (DLSE) has published a poster and wage notice for employers to use in compliance with AB 1522, California’s new mandatory sick pay law.
On September 10, 2014, Governor Jerry Brown signed the Healthy Workplaces, Healthy Families Act of 2014. The Act requires California employers to provide employees with one hour of paid sick leave for every 30 hours worked starting on July 1, 2015. The Act also required the DLSE to create a poster and updated wage notice for employees.
In compliance with the Act, the DLSE has also published a paid sick leave poster. The poster includes basic information regarding employee sick pay rights.
The poster states that employees who work in California for 30 or more days after July 1, 2015 are entitled to paid sick leave. Accrual begins on the first day of employment or July 1, 2015, whichever is later. The poster also summarizes the Act’s accrual and use rules and invites employees to file a complaint with the Labor Commissioner if they believe that they have been a victim of retaliation or discrimination.
The new poster can also be found on the Department of Industrial Relations website.
According to the DLSE website, employers must use the new section 2810.5 notice and the paid sick leave poster beginning January 1, 2015. Employers need not distribute the amended section 2810.5 notice to all existing employees. Rather, the new form should be provided to new hires and to existing employees within seven days of a change of terms not disclosed on a pay stub.
The agency’s action is apt to cause confusion for employees who receive the notice or view the poster during the first half of 2015, given that the sick pay accrual and use rights do not become effective until July 1, 2015. The poster does inform careful readers that the paid sick leave rights begin accruing in July. The section 2810.5 notice, on the other hand, does not provide any information as to the effective date of the rights.
Congress Stumbles to FY15 Funding Bill
Congress struggled to meet its December 11th deadline to avoid a government shutdown and to fund the government for rest of Fiscal Year 2015. The funding legislation, known as the “CRomnibus” in Washington, was passed by the US House of Representatives last night with a slim majority, which sets the stage for final Senate passage either today or tomorrow. Securing the necessary votes proved a challenge for Speaker Boehner as he was forced to delay the vote by a few hours in order gather more support for the measure. The Senate is expected to adopt the measure by Saturday night and send it to President Obama’s desk for his signature.
The “CRomnibus” is a combination of a continuing resolution (CR), which keeps spending levels the same as the previous year and an omnibus appropriations bill. The omnibus is essentially a bundled spending package of 11 of 12 appropriation bills and would fund most federal programs through September of 2015. The continuing resolution portion would fund the Department of Homeland Security only through March.